HoP 399 - Seriously Funny - Rabelais

June 19th, 2022

In his outrageous novel about Pantagruel and Gargantua, Rabelais engages with scholasticism, humanism, medicine, the reformation, and the querelle des femmes.

HoP 397 - Do As the Romans Did - French Humanism

May 22nd, 2022

We begin to look at philosophy in Renaissance France, beginning with humanists like Budé and the use of classical philosophy by poets du Bellay and Ronsard.

HoP 383 - Slowly But Surely - Huldrych Zwingli

November 7th, 2021

The Swiss theologian Zwingli launches the Reformation in Switzerland, but clashes with Luther and more radical Protestants.

HoP 381 - More Lutheran than Luther - Philip Melanchthon

October 10th, 2021

Luther’s close ally Melanchthon uses his knowledge of ancient philosophy and rhetoric in the service of the Reformation.

HoP 374 - Opposites Attract - Nicholas of Cusa

June 6th, 2021

The radical negative theology of Nicholas of Cusa, and his hope of establishing peace between the religions of the world.

HoP 373 - Lords of Language - Northern Humanism

May 23rd, 2021

Rudolph Agricola, Juan Luis Vives and other humanist scholars spread the study of classical antiquity across Europe and mock the technicalities of scholastic philosophy.

HoP 367 - Brian Copenhaver on Renaissance Magic

February 28th, 2021

Our guest Brian Copenhaver joins us to explain how Ficino and other Renaissance philosophers thought about magic.

HoP 360 - Dag N. Hasse on Arabic Learning in the Renaissance

November 22nd, 2020

An interview with Dag Nikolaus Hasse on the Renaissance reception of Averroes, Avicenna, and other authors who wrote in Arabic.

HoP 355 - Town and Gown - Italian Universities

September 13th, 2020

The blurry line dividing humanism and scholastic university culture in the Italian Renaissance.

HoP 344 - The Count of Concord - Pico della Mirandola

March 8th, 2020

Pico della Mirandola argues for the harmony of the ancient authorities, draws on Jewish mysticism, and questions the value of humanist rhetoric.

HoP 337 - More Rare Than the Phoenix - Italian Women Humanists

December 1st, 2019

Cassandra Fedele, Isotta Nogarola, and Laura Cereta seek fame and glory through eloquence and learning.

HoP 331 - Literary Criticism - Lorenzo Valla

September 8th, 2019

Lorenzo Valla launches a furious attack on scholastic philosophy, favoring the resources of classical Latin.

HoP 311 - The Elements of Style - Rhetoric in Byzantium

November 4th, 2018

Psellos and other experts in rhetoric explore how this art of persuasion relates to philosophy.

HoP 302 - On the Eastern Front - Philosophy in Syriac and Armenian

June 3rd, 2018

Eastern Christian philosophy outside of Constantinople, focusing on translation and exegesis in the languages of Syriac and Armenian.

HoP 289 - A Wing and a Prayer - Angels in Medieval Philosophy

November 19th, 2017

Be surprised by how many philosophical problems arise in connection with angels (how many can dance on the head of a pin is not one of them).

HoP 283 - Jack Zupko on John Buridan

July 30th, 2017

Peter speaks to Jack Zupko about John Buridan's secular and parsimonious approach to philosophy.

HoP 282 - Portrait of the Artist - John Buridan

July 16th, 2017

The hipster’s choice for favorite scholastic, John Buridan, sets out a nominalist theory of knowledge and language, and explains the workings of free will.